LONDON.- The world premiere of Sebastião Salgados photographic exhibition Genesis opened at the Natural History Museum in London.

The majesty of nature and the balance of human relationships with our fragile planet are explored through over 200 spectacular black and white photographs by the world-leading photographer.

The culmination of 8 years work, Sebastião Salgado: Genesis draws together images of landscapes and wildlife, alongside depictions of human communities that continue to live in accordance with their ancestral traditions and cultures. The exhibition builds on the Museums reputation as the home of the planets best photography in Wildlife Photographer of the Year.

Salgado says of the Genesis collection, This has been one of my longest photographic adventures: eight years researching, exploring and celebrating natures unspoiled legacy. I have journeyed through 32 countries to rediscover the mountains, deserts and oceans, the animals and peoples that have so far escaped the imprint of modern society. It is a pictorial depiction of the lands and lives of a still pristine planet. I feel Genesis also speaks urgently to our own age by portraying the breathtaking beauty of a lost world that somehow survives. It proclaims: this is what is in peril, this is what we must save.

Genesis is Sebastião Salgados third long-term examination of global issues, following his previous acclaimed collections Workers and Migrations. He has been awarded numerous major photographic prizes in recognition of his accomplishments, most recently receiving the Gold Medal Award for Photography from the National Arts Club in New York.

Born in Brazil in 1944, Salgado trained as an economist before starting work for the International Coffee Organization and travelling to Africa on missions for the World Bank. By 1973, he had abandoned his life as an economist to become a photographer, working on news assignments before steering more towards documentary and reportage work. Salgado is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and is also an honorary member of the Academy of Arts and Sciences in the USA.

After the London premiere, the exhibition will go on show in Toronto, Rio de Janeiro, Rome and Paris and is supported by Vale.